We often hear Christian's use the word 'Shalom' which we know means peace. But does it mean peace only in the sense that nothing is troubling us or does it mean more? Matt Chandler in his book 'The Explicit Gospel' quotes from Scholar Cornelius Plantinga in describing a rivher more meaningful understanding of Shalom.
"The webbing together of God, humans, and all creation in justice, fulfillment, and delight is what the Hebrew prophets call shalom. We call it peace, but it means far more than mere peace of mind or a cease-fire between enemies. In the Bible, shalom means universal flourishing, wholeness, and delight—a rich state of affairs in which natural seeds are satisfied and natural gifts fruitfully employed, a state of affairs that inspires joyful wonder as its Creator and Savior opens doors and welcomes the creatures in whom he delights. Shalom, in other words, is the way things ought to be."
Scholar Cornelius Plantinga
The problem is of course, that when our first parents; Adam & Eve were put out of Eden mankind was losing more than just a nice place. We lost Shalom, we lost harmony with God, and since then nothing has been the way it ought to be.
Romans 8 tells of the groaning of the world over the lost Shalom and the longing for the restoration of it. The life, death & resurrection of Jesus are pivotal to the redemption of mankind and the restoration of Shalom upon us, but the question begs to be asked - if Jesus has come to bring His people back to God & to open the floodgates of forgiveness and mercy, why 2000 years later is our world still so broken?
Jesus did not fail. There is more prophecy to be fulfilled and this Prince of Shalom will return to earth to set up His Kingdom of peace & restore things to how they were on those first days of creation.
